I bought a hat...

Here's a quick jist of my travels...and they all begin with my new hat. I went to Rome for the second time this year with ACM--we went everywhere in a whirlwind of 3 days, but I somehow find time to travel the narrow street behind our hotel to find a magical hat of splendid adventure. It's a wide navy blue straw hat with a small bow in the back. It's classic like Kate Winslet's purple Titanic headpiece that covers her eyes, choosing only to reveal red lips. Which, of course, is what I always try to recreate.

After Rome we went to Pompei, where Evan and I turned into frolicking imps akin to the Prince of Parties. We basically trespassed every ruin with sacreligious scenes of sacrifices and silly poses. I'm not going again till I have children.

I went to Rome a third time, senza capello, but with Carolina. We had such a great time. Our theme was: Old Men that take care of us. These old men weren't creepy, though that preface may make one suspicious, but it all started at the Trevi Fountain. Carolina and I needed someone to take a picture of us and this group of Welsh men volunteered, they said one had won awards for his photography. Then they asked us about what we were doing. And when we told them about out travels and studies and plans for Paris, they recommended several museums and were jusst very cordial. They were there for the rugby match against Italy and Wales, which is what brought us to meet Keif, this middle-aged, very drunk man who offered us drinks with the promise that he didn't expect anything. We said we didn't want any but he bought some anyway.

He kept asking us where we were from.
"Puerto Rico."
"No. You look like you're from Abermarle."
"We don't have the accents."
"You're right about that, but you look like you're from Abermarle. Where are you from."
Carolina decided to lie, "Singapore."
"No. Now, I don't believe that. What are your names."
"Sarah," Carolina replied.
"Jenni," I lied.
"I have to take a piss," He interjected.
"What?" Carolina said.
"You don't say that?"
"No."
"I have to use the bathroom."
"Okay."
"Don't leave."
When he came back and asked, yet again, where we were from, we said Alaska. Sarah Lee and Jenni Craig from Alaska.
"Do you make a lot of love in Alaska to keep warm?"
"No, we just drink a bit more." Then we thanked him, lied once more saying some friends called us, and left.
Then this older Italian man and a younger one invited us to a club when they overheard me asking the bartender where to find one.

They took us to two clubs where I danced with Carolina and a fabulous gay man, of course. Then we went back to the hostel at 4 am and slept till 10:30 because the cleaning lady kicked us out. We went sight seeing, met up with Vijay and just wandered.

That night we crashed at Vijay's hotel lobby! I had a 5am train and I didn't want to pay for a hostel. It worked out. I slept on the train the whole ride back to my last week in Florence.

This past weekend I said goodbye to my wonderful host family--got teary eyed a couple of times--but was excited for Paris. Before I left though, I went to Ponte Vecchio to say goodbye and was approached, no joke, by Fabio, who was on his way to class and offered me a cafe. I said no thank you and that he should go to class. He tried to guess where I was from-Russia or South America, he insisted.
"Sono misteriosa." I'm a mystery.

After he shared his info, I revealed that I was Puerto Rican and said goodbye.

I traveled to Paris with my wide-brimmed hat. I wore so many layers to avoid an overweight bag. Luckily, a nice guy named Andrea helped me with my bag and taught some French phrases to me. He's half-Italian and half-French. I was afraid of French and still struggle, but it's only been day two. Since the minute I got to Paris, it's been a party with Carolina and her sweet friends. We've danced to house music and latin music, witnessed a bar fight with blood spilling on the floor, we fled the club even though everything was under control and, while running accross the street... I FELL.

I tripped Champs Elysees.

I ripped my stockings and skinned my knee a little. I should have courtsied to make it funnier and more graceful, but we escaped the embarassment by going to a caffe-a hookah bar--where we ate kinder bueno and drank tea. The owner left before we did and called us from the restaurant phone...a waiter brought the phone to us like a scene from a mafia movie or something, because the owner wanted to let us know that the place was ours and we were welcomed to come whenever. So, in the end, falling worked for the better.

All of Carolina's friends are sassy, kind, and fun: Ines is from Portugal, Anastasia´s from Cyprus, Lima's from Holland, and no one believes that we're from Puerto Rico. C'e la vie!